Envy (Empty Coffin #1) by Gregg Olsen

New York Times bestselling adult true crime author Gregg Olsen makes his YA debut with EMPTY COFFIN, a gripping new fiction series for teens based on ripped-from-the-headlines stories…with a paranormal touch.

Crime lives--and dies--in the deceptively picture-perfect town of Port Gamble (aka “Empty Coffin”), Washington. Evil lurks and strange things happen--and 15-year-olds Hayley and Taylor Ryan secretly use their wits and their telepathic “twin-sense” to uncover the truth about the town's victims and culprits.

Envy, the series debut, involves the mysterious death of the twins' old friend, Katelyn. Was it murder? Suicide? An accident? Hayley and Taylor are determined to find out--and as they investigate, they stumble upon a dark truth that is far more disturbing than they ever could have imagined.

Based on the shocking true crime about cyber-bullying, Envy will take you to the edge--and push you right over.

Review:

Envy by Gregg Olsen was a thrilling ride of a book. The action began from the start with the death of a teen girl and the mysterious circumstances leading up to that tragic night. The news of Katelyn's death spreads quickly through the town and twins Hayley and Taylor Ryan take it upon themselves to unravel the mystery. The twins are former friends of Katelyn--and they share a unique bond that allows them to communicate with forces beyond this world. Forces that may give them clues to solve this mystery.

Gregg Olsen's writing was impeccable. The mystery had me on the edge of my seat the whole time I was reading and I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. Each chapter seemed to end in a cliffhanger that just screamed to have one more chapter be read. The paranormal elements were peppered in enough that it added another layer to this novel without it being classified as a straight "paranormal" genre book. To me, that was one of the things that made this novel so fantastic and scary. The events could absolutely be real. Any girl could be the victim of cyberbullying and the concept of a "psychic twin-bond" is not out of the realm of possibility.

The book was fast-paced, well-written, and the ending spiraled out of control with a twist that I could never in a million years have seen coming. I will anxiously be awaiting the second Empty Coffin novel.

Fans of mysteries, thrillers, and paranormal books will enjoy this story and while it is targeted as a YA novel, it is definitely a novel that any adult could pick up and enjoy equally well!